


Obligatory Beach Episode

by selfindulgences



Category: Gorillaz
Genre: Day At The Beach, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Found Family Vibes, Multi, Phase One (Gorillaz), Sexual Humor, because of Murdoc lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-04
Updated: 2020-08-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:40:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25567597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/selfindulgences/pseuds/selfindulgences
Summary: Their first worldwide tour took quite the toll on them all. Murdoc figured a bit of fun might reinvigorate the listless sods enough to brainstorm for their next album. What better place to kick back than a Californian beach?His girlfriend could come along, too, of course. For Day 2 of #summersiweek2020 on Twitter.
Relationships: Murdoc Niccals/Original Character(s), Murdoc Niccals/Original Female Character(s), Original Female Character & Everyone
Kudos: 3





	Obligatory Beach Episode

**Author's Note:**

> This is my entry for Day 2 of #summersiweek on Twitter! The prompt for today was "Beach". It's days late at this point and largely unedited, but here you go.
> 
> This is a stand-alone one-shot, though if you're reading my fic Over the Dub, you can also think of this as an aimless bonus chapter (Chapter 32.5).

Being in a world-famous band had its perks. Capturing the attention of all the rubes of the world was definitely one of the better ones. But fame was fleeting, and Murdoc coveted something far more tangible.

To a kid who grew up with practically nothing, accruing as much wealth as humanly possible was more than just a pipe dream. It was his only way to escape. If he made it big, he’d never have to skip meals or work long, grueling hours for less than a living wage. He’d never have to worry about barely scraping by ever again.

And that was just what he’d done. His band made it to the top of the charts effortlessly, earning him more wealth than he knew what to do with. What better way to flaunt it than by spending it all in extravagant fashions?

On a near-whim, he rented out an entire Californian beach for the day just because he could. Their first worldwide tour took quite the toll on them all. Murdoc figured a bit of fun might reinvigorate the listless sods enough to brainstorm for their next album. A beach-themed album didn’t sound all that bad, either.

He invited his girlfriend, too, of course. Mainly as an excuse to see her in a bikini. He’d seen her in far less clothing—no clothing at all, in fact—but that didn’t mean the image excited him any less.

A limo would be far too conspicuous, even if no one would be at the beach, so they rented a spacious SUV for the trip instead. They picked Anna up at her apartment and off they went. He was a little disappointed she wasn't already in her bikini. Her sharp punch to his arm quickly put a stop to any further complaints.

It might’ve been a bit egotistical blasting their own album on the way there. But with the band and Anna all singing along, Russel tapping out his rhythms along his legs and the back of the front seat, and his own enthusiastic headbanging, Murdoc didn’t much care how it looked from the outside.

They arrived right when they were in the middle of fumbling through “Clint Eastwood”. Their driver was gracious enough to let the song finish before shutting the car down and helping them out with their bags.

With nothing much to do, Anna and Murdoc headed for the beach to scout for a good spot. A fluttering Closed sign hung over a heavy chain linked between two pillars in front of the beach.

“Closed?” she read aloud.

“Yup. Closed for a private party,” Murdoc said.

Her shoulders stiffened. “Private party?”

“Party of five, that is. Wah-ah-ow.”

The tension sloughed off her immediately. “Oh, good. I really need a day off.”

“Hey, could you two come help Noodle with the watermelons?” Russel called out to them. “The net holding them broke when she tried dragging it out."

“Watermelons?” Anna repeated.

Murdoc steered her back to the car. “Yeah, Noodle got ‘em ‘specially imported from Japan. And some kinda big stick. Not sure wot for.”

“Ooooh, they might be for _suikawari_ then!”

“ _Suki..._ huh?” 2-D asked, carefully balancing the beach umbrella over his shoulder.

Noodle grinned up at him. “ _Suikawari!_ ” she yelled and mimicked slashing a stick down.

“Wha’?”

“It’s a game where you spin around a bunch and then try to smash a watermelon with a stick,” Anna explained. “My Japanese professor let us play it at the end of my last semester of college. It was so fun.”

Murdoc frowned. “So this, er, suki water game—”

“ _Suikawari!_ ” Noodle shouted.

“Wotever. If the whole point of the game is to simply smash a melon, then it sounds rather easy to me.”

Anna helped Noodle fold up the broken net bag as she explained, “There are rules that make it a bit harder. You have to start like a few meters away then try to find it blindfolded. The goal is to make the cleanest slice through with the stick.”

“Ah, so it’s one thing to just smash the melon and another to make that smash _look_ good, eh?” he muttered, rubbing his chin.

Murdoc’s eyes strayed down when she hefted two watermelons up, one under each arm. “If only _your_ melons were such a grotesque size,” he teased.

She snorted. “There are far more efficient ways to break my back than big-ass boobs, thanks.”

“Oh yeah? I can think of _several_ back-breaking positions we could try.”

Russel whacked him with the legs of a fold-out chair as he walked past them. “Man, keep it in your pants.”

“Do you see my trousers off, mate?” Murdoc snapped, rubbing the sore spot on his back.

Everyone else ignored him as they headed towards the beach. As Russel set up his fancy grilling station, Anna and Noodle headed off to the locker rooms to get dressed in their swimwear. Noodle put on a cute Powerpuff Girls one-piece with a little blue skirt on the bottom while Anna had a more subdued dark blue bikini.

Even though Anna lived in L.A. much of her life, she hardly went to the beach. Hell, she didn’t even know how to swim. She thought that maybe wearing a bikini might give her a bit more confidence in her body. It was both a little exciting and terribly nerve-wracking showing off for her boyfriend, at least.

She quickly tied her black hair up in a messy bun and helped Noodle do the same. When the two finally came out, they found Russel already grilling up a couple burgers and Murdoc and 2-D playing beach volleyball. Or trying to, anyway. 2-D had terrible hand-eye coordination and kept setting the ball way too far. Murdoc, on the other hand, was having way too much fun smacking the ball at 2-D's face.

"You guys ready to destroy some fruit?" Anna called out before Murdoc could serve again.

The volleyball slipped out of his hand when he caught sight of her. His eyes first drifted to her lean, tan stomach then followed her small hips swinging to the right.

He finally looked up when she spoke again. "I'm going first, but I'm gonna need some help." Her hand rested above her right hip, gripping the base of a large stick with the other. She held up a cloth—the blindfold, he assumed—and beckoned him forth with a coy finger.

He swallowed hard. This was a more dangerous venture than he thought it'd be.

Murdoc moved behind her to tie the blindfold over her eyes, none too tightly. “Haw haw…" he managed to get out. "Maybe we should introduce this bad boy into the bedroom.”

“Dude, not in front of Noodle.”

“She can’t hear me from here. Not that she’d understand wot I’m talking about even if she did.”

Anna snorted. “It does sound exciting. But if I manage to split my watermelon better than you, the blindfold’s going on _you_ first.”

“Oh? You’re on, darling,” he growled low in her ear.

She playfully bopped him away with her hip. “Okay, back up. I gotta spin around.”

Spinning in a circle about ten times with a blindfold on was more disorienting than she thought it’d be. Their cheers echoed all around her, growing louder the closer she assumed she was to her target. A thrill ran through her when they shouted for her to stop.

"Do I go for it?" she asked in their general direction.

Murdoc cleared his throat. "Hold on. Turn a little more to the left."

She shuffled a bit.

"Perfect, love! Smash it!"

She held the stick up high with all the rapture of a giddy executioner. The impact was jarring and satisfying all at once.

Anna lifted her blindfold up. She had slashed the melon on its side. It was a relatively clean cut. Just not as symmetrical as she hoped. They cleaned up her pieces of watermelon for the next person's slaughter.

2-D went next. It took him a lot longer to get his bearings. Mostly because Murdoc kept shouting the wrong direction for him to go, but even with her and Noodle’s help, he just couldn’t seem to get near the watermelon. After what felt like an hour, he managed to find the area with his melon...only to miss his swing by a good two feet.

Russel scowled when Murdoc broke into booming laughter. 2-D poked his watermelon with the stick, pouting at his loss.

Murdoc snatched the stick out of his hands. "Lemme show you how it's done, Face-Ache."

All those drunken episodes of his prepared him for a game like this, it seemed. He barely staggered even after spinning around twenty times. Unfortunately, his swing was just shy of the melon, and 2-D burst out into triumphant laughter. At least he wasn’t the only one who missed. Murdoc shoved the blindfold back on and waved the stick around wildly while he chased 2-D around the beach.

Eventually, Noodle kicked Murdoc down to the sand to take the stick from him. Much like Murdoc, however, she didn't seem all that disoriented after spinning around. She broke into a wide, toothy grin when she rose the stick over her head and slashed down faster than their eyes could catch.

A moment of silence passed when Noodle lifted her blindfold. The melon suddenly cracked in two completely even parts, as if afraid of disappointing her with anything less. Russel's cheers for her from behind the grill overshadowed the rest of theirs by sheer volume.

It took them all a bit of coaxing for Russel to finally play. He left 2-D to watch the ribs smoke over a low flame then got to it. Warm sand kicked up in a messy circle around him, creating a weird sort of crater by the time he finished spinning. Russel didn't hesitate to bring the stick down as hard as he could once he found the waiting melon. It exploded into a million fragments all over the beach. The fruit juice inside splattered all over Noodle, Murdoc, and Anna's faces.

"Jesus Christ, Russel! You only had to cut through the watermelon, not obliterate it," Anna grumbled, digging a towel from her bag to wipe her face with.

Murdoc eyed her up and down then cracked a crude grin. "Can't say I'm not thankful for it."

"What d'you—"

He licked up the side of her face without even an ounce of hesitation or shame.

Anna let out a warbled scream at the shock, her face as red as the bits of splattered watermelon around the beach. Russel smacked the back of his head with the stick, and Murdoc immediately collapsed face-first into the sand.

"Muds, what'd I tell you 'bout keepin' it in your pants?" he grumbled. "Nasty ass...."

Noodle's high-pitched laughter roused Murdoc to consciousness again. "Fuckin' hell, Russ. All I did was lick her face. You wouldn't've done that if I was a dog, would you?"

"Man, at least dogs're cute."

"Russ! 'ow long do I 'ave to smoke these ribs?" 2-D called from behind the barbecue. A plume of black smoke curled into the air overhead.

Curses trailed after Russel when he ran over to try and save their lunch from a fiery doom.

Anna pushed herself to her feet, holding out a hand to help her hapless boyfriend up. "C'mon. Those ribs have to be pretty well-done now considering the smoke."

Murdoc snorted. He didn't let go of her hand even after getting up.

Noodle took her time gathering the salvageable bits of Russel's _suikawari_ disaster, happily munching on a few of the smaller pieces and stacking the rinds as she worked.

Anna smiled. "Noodle, _ikou_." She tilted her head towards the picnic table where 2-D was already seated.

He waved the knife he was using to carve up their watermelons at them when they approached. "You 'ungry?"

"Why else would we be here? You better not have burnt our lunch, dullard," Murdoc grumbled.

"That's why Russel's 'avin' me cut the wa'ermelons." 2-D offered a decently triangular piece. "Want some?"

Murdoc shrugged and took a huge bite while 2-D still held it out to him. His surprised grunt made Anna tilt her head. "Oh wow, that's sweet. Much more than I was expecting."

He snatched his slice of watermelon and let her take a bite, smiling a bit when her eyes grew wide. "Oh holy shit, that _is_ sweet."

" _Amai._ " Noodle tossed another rind onto the growing pile next to her.

"So who won that wa'ermelon game anyway?" 2-D asked, setting the knife aside.

"Uh, whoever had the cleanest cut, I think," Anna said. "So Noodle won by a landslide."

Noodle laughed through mouthfuls of fruit. " _Mochiron!_ "

" _Of course_ ," Anna repeated, her tone light and mocking. "It's not nice to brag, Noods."

"A'ight, I managed to save the ribs somehow, so stop spoilin' your appetites," Russel cut in. "And clear the table. We ain't eatin' with all these watermelon rinds around."

While they waited for him to serve up their dinner, Murdoc asked, “So how do you pronounce the name of that watermelon smashing game again?”

Anna smiled when she turned to him. “I guess it's a bit difficult if you don't know Japanese. I'll break it down into syllables. Su-ee-kah-wa-ri. _Suikawari."_

“ _Su...Suikawari,_ ” he mumbled uncertainly.

Noodle clapped her hands. “ _Yoku dekimashita!_ ”

“Wot’d she say?”

Anna ruffled his hair. “Good job, Muds.”

“Piss off," he grumbled, pushing her hand away. "Don’t patronize me.”

She left a short peck on his cheek. “Not patronizing you, dude.”

Both Noodle and 2-D scrunched their faces up.

“Yuck! Don’t be all mushy in front’a us!” he whined.

“ _Kimoi!_ ”

“Aw, you’re just jealous I have a cute girlfriend and you don’t.” Murdoc slung a triumphant arm around her, giving her his own peck on her cheek. They both groaned again but said nothing else. It’d be pointless, what with him in such a grotesquely cuddly mood.

Thankfully, Russel served up their barbecued ribs and burgers before he could do too much more to make the both of them uncomfortable. Immature children, the lot of them.

After taking a lazy moment to digest, they all splashed and chased each other along the shore. It didn't feel like hours had passed by the time they grew tired of it. The sunset dictated otherwise.

Anna set out another beach towel to sit on while 2-D and Noodle went to help Russel grill their dinner. Murdoc joined her without hesitation. "Thanks for today, Murdoc," she muttered, watching the waves crawl over the shore. "I really needed this."

"So did I, if I must be honest. Could've done without the wicked swing to the head from Russ, though."

"You didn't have to lick my face like that, you damn perv."

"Oh, come off it. You know you liked it."

She leaned her head against his shoulder. "Shut up."

"You tired?"

Anna hummed. The sound was just barely audible over the waves.

He nudged her up again then went to lie on the other side of the beach towel. She joined him without question, lying on his shoulder.

"I think I'll buy a beachfront property with all the money we got from the album sales." He stroked her hair back absently. "Imagine waking up to this every single day."

"Imagine falling asleep to this every night." Her soft smile sent a shiver down his spine.

A sly half-smile of his own curled his mouth up. "Oh? Are you implying wot I think you're implying, my love?"

That lovely smile of hers fell away. "I'm talking about the sound of the ocean, Murdoc."

"I-I wouldn't be exactly...opposed to waking up next to you every morning, y'know."

Anna's dark eyes studied his face. She probably thought he was messing with her. He wasn't. Surely she knew him better than this by now.

Her lips grazed along his neck as a sleepy gesture of affection. "Me neither," she muttered against his skin. The words sank in, slow and deep and warm in his chest.

She shifted a bit so now her mouth was right by his ear. "Think I'm gonna take a nap until dinner. Wake me up later, okay? Love you."

And just like that, she was quiet again. Lazy arm draped over him, her soft breathing and ocean waves echoing in his ears. Murdoc didn't want to be anywhere else. Didn't even dare to move.

He watched his bandmates chatting and cooking and making general nuisances of themselves. It'd been a while since he'd seen them this happy. It might be another long while before they'd get a break like this ever again.

Murdoc shut his eyes and succumbed to his own exhaustion.

Yes, having lots of money certainly did have its perks. These rare happy moments in-between, however, were far more valuable to him than he'd ever care to say.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope y'all enjoyed my self-indulgence lol. If you have even a little, I'll be happy.
> 
> Thanks for reading, and until next time, my dudes!


End file.
